You Are Groovy!

Hi everyone! I hope you are having a groovy-licous day. I made this card for Cath's latest Moxie Fab World Challenge: Signs of Peace. I love seeing the peace symbol in fashion and decor. Last week, one of my nieces' birthday gifts had peace symbols all over it.

My card was inspired by a pillow I saw in an ad for Big Lots! this week. Inspiration can come from anywhere, right?

Since I didn't have any stamps with peace symbols, I used my Silhouette digital cutter and this downloaded peace symbol icon to cut out my peace symbols. I used a circle punch for the circles. For the sentiment, I downloaded a free groovy 60s-type font. I choose this one called Disko from dafont.com. To add more flower-power to this card, I added a flower-shaped brad from Making Memories.

Tip: This type of card is a great way to use up smaller scraps, which is my never-ending mission.

Card Ingredients

Stamps: none

Paper: Matte brochure paper (Xerox), Basic Black & scraps from SU!

Ink: my printer

Tools: Microsoft Word & Disko font from dafont.com, Silhouette & peace symbol, Modern Label punch (SU!), 1" circle punch (SU!), 1/16" hole punch (Fiskars)

Other: flower brad (Making Memories), foam tape, Tombow Mono Multi Liquid Glue

Loved "Memoirs of a Geisha"

I loved watching "Memoirs of a Geisha" for the Cinema Saturday Creative Challenge. This movie is so beautiful! The colors, the story, the actors...I could watch it again and still love it.

My inspiration came from the handkerchief The Chairman gave Chiyo when she was a little girl. Chiyo/Sayuri protects this handkerchief as if it's her most prized possession.

The inner white square on this card is my interpretation of the handkerchief stamped with the Kanji symbol for love.

I love origami and washi papers. I have several stacks of them. This was a good reason to use some. I first made a kimono using the instructions from this YouTube video. I didn't use the kimono, because I kept thinking about the handkerchief.

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Kanji (SU-retired)
Paper: Japanese Origami Paper (Hanko Designs), Basic Black, White (JudiKins)
Ink: VersaMark, Basic Black
Other: Detail Gold embossing powder (PSX), Pink Pirouette felt flower, gold brad (Making Memories), ribbon, Asian brass medallion, gold thread, foam tape, 1 3/8" and 1 9/16" square punches

Friend

This is the first time I've done one of Stacy Schafer's Jewelry Color Inspiration Challenges (#10). When I saw the jewelry in her photo, I knew I had to create something. I love jewelry! Being from the Southwest, I love turquoise and silver. The colors for this challenge were Chocolate Chip, Tempting Turquoise, Tangerine Tango, and Whisper White. Besides the colors, I was definitely inspired by actual beads.





I used my craft knife to cut the items that were not paper punched. I used at least 7 paper punches for this challenge.

Thanks for looking!

Card Ingredients
Stamps: none
Paper: white (JudiKins), Chocolate Chip, Tempting Turquoise (I made it by rubbing the ink onto glossy paper with a brayer), Tangerine Tango (textured)
Ink: Tempting Turquoise
Paper Punches: 1/4", 3/4", 1", 1 1/16", 1 1/4", and 1 3/8" circle punches, corner rounder, swirl punch (I haven't used this one in years!)
Other: Love & Happiness Rub On (SU), Tombo glue, dimensionals, Making Memories brad, mini silver beads (Michael's)

Muchas Gracias, Burberry

I'm glad it's Friday! It was a busier than normal week. I volunteered several days at our school's book fair. This is week 12 (the last week) of Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge. This week's handbag was the Mini Warrior by Burberry.

I wasn't familiar with Burberry. I'll all knew about Burberry is that it's expensive. This purse retails for $1600! Looking at the Neiman Marcus website, it was clear to see that Burberry uses a very distinct plaid pattern. That was definitely my inspiration this week. I knew it would be hard to recreate, so I did the same trick of creating my own cardstock that I did last week. I found this purse. I saved the picture on my computer. Using Picasa, I cropped a good deal of the plaid design and printed it on cream-colored cardstock. I used a paper punch to punch out the tiny squares.

I used my oval Coluzzle to create an oval shaped card. I trimmed the bottom of the oval off to create a flat bottom.

The voting for this challenge will start tomorrow morning and go through Sunday evening on Theresa's blog. Thanks for looking!

Card Ingredients

Stamps: Flores Llamativas

Paper: Crimson paper (Only the Best Los Gatos), cream (CA Paper Goods)

Ink: VersaMark

Other: silver embossing powder (PSX), Making Memories silver eyelets, Sakura silver gel pen, 5/8" square punch, 1 3/8" square punch, Riding Hood Red Taffeta ribbon (SU), corner rounder, silver cording

Thank You - Breakfast at Tiffany's

I tried to post this last night, but the photo I took downstairs in my studio didn't show the details well enough. I like photos taken with natural lighting.

This was week 2 of the Cinema Saturday Creative Challenge. The movie this week was Sankari's favorite, Breakfast at Tiffany's.

On Saturday afternoon, I downloaded the movie from Amazon onto my TiVo box. Pretty good deal for $2.99. I had seen most of the movie before, but it was a long time ago. It was fun to watch it again. Even Kalino enjoyed watching parts of the movie. He was laughing at Mickey Rooney's portrayal of Mr. Yunioshi. I've been humming "Moon River" ever since. I was inspired by Holly's clothes and jewelry. I loved the opening scene too. I also had to add some Tiffany blue on my card. I love how everything from her hair to her wardrobe could be worn today and it doesn't look out of style.

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Priceless
Paper: Basic Black, cream, black DSP (Making Memories 5th Avenue Diecut Stack)
Ink: Memories Black, VersaMark
Other: chipboard (Target $ Spot), pearl ribbon (Michael's), rhinestones (Michael's), Tombo glue, dimensionals, clear embossing powder, flower (Prima), half pearl (Target $ Spot)

Sinceramente Gracias

We are down to the home stretch for Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge. This is week 11 of 12. This week's bag is the Kate Spade Oaxaca Reyna Raffia Tote.

I barely started this card at 6 PM this evening! I volunteered at my son's school most of the day. Talk about cutting it close! I liked textured cardstock, so I choose to stamp and emboss my images on textured Tangerine Tango. I only had one bird, but I wanted a mirror image. I stamped the bird onto my Pivot Palette and then placed the cardstock on top. I used a brayer to transfer the mirror image to my cardstock. Everything was embossed with clear embossing powder. I also just rubbed VersaMark onto cardstock and embossed a large area. I cut some of the vines out by hand and some of the leaves instead of only using the small leaf stamp in the Vive con Proposito set.

The hardest part of this card was figuring out how to get the woven raffia look. I tried to find digital scrapping sources for this, but I couldn't. I got the bright idea to use the image from the Nordstrom website. They always show the back side of their products. Yes! They had the back of this handbag. I saved the image to my computer and then enlarged it and printed it out on cardstock. I like how it came out.

The voting will start tomorrow morning and go through Sunday evening on Theresa's blog. Thanks for looking!

Card Ingredients

Stamps: bird (Inkadinkado - bought in a large pack of stamps from Costco), Vive con Proposito, Tarjetas Con Bordes Festoneados

Paper: Textured and regular Tangerine Tango, I downloaded the back picture of the handbag and enlarged it and printed it out on cream colored cardstock

Ink: VersaMark

Other: Clear embossing powder, Pivot Palette (Alextamping), Tombo glue, dimensionals, silver mini beads (Michael's)

For You "Pride & Prejudice"

I've admired Brooke and Sankari's work when I saw it appear in response to Krisina's Color Inspiration challenges. When they started their own challenge a few days ago, I knew I had to jump in. They started the Cinema Saturday Creative Challenge. A long time ago, I noticed on the project ingredients, Sankari would list what movie she watched while creating a particular project. I noticed Brooke doing the same thing.

Their first challenge was to create a project inspired by "Pride & Prejudice." I have a computer in my studio, but not a TV. I can watch shows from our TiVo box on my computer because we have a SlingBox...cool device.

Sankari gave YouTube links to several "Pride & Prejudice" clips. I was hooked. I read the book in high school and saw the 1995 BBC version of the movie years ago, but I didn't see the Keira Knightly movie. Did you know you can watch the entire 1995 version on YouTube (it's 36 mini files and no commercials)? Since Saturday, I watched the entire series all over again! Girls, you created an addict! I'm almost speaking in a British accent! Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle are the perfect Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. Did you know Jennifer Ehle was born in North Carolina?

Anyway on to the card and envelope... I had some old sealing wax medallions, so I melted one to seal the envelope and pressed a rose stamp onto it. That's the little blob you see.

The card was inspired by the muted colors they tended to wear and the vintage floral patterns in their decor. I noticed a lot of creams and a few pops of color.

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Fresh Cuts, Watercolor Minis (retired)
Paper: cream colored parchment, DSP & flower (DaisyD's Spring Blossoms), envelope (Nature's Paper)
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Brilliance Gold
Other: button (SU), River Rock double stitched ribbon, twine, scallop edge punch, dimensionals, wax seal (JudiKins)
Movie watched: "Pride & Prejudice" BBC version

Altered Starbucks Gift Card Holder

Recently, you'll notice I'm a bit obsessed with making gift card holders. Just in the last 2 weeks, I've posted a few entries: here and here.

When Theresa posted this Elaine Turner Tote for week 10 of the Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge, I loved the enormous flowers. I didn't want to do a card this week, but I couldn't decide what I wanted to create.

I went to Costco on Wednesday (the same day Theresa posted this challenge). Costco is now selling packs of Starbucks gift cards. I bought some and loved the nice vanilla cardstock gift card holder they came in. The holder also had some velvety texture on them. I took apart the gift card holder and traced it onto some designer paper...not a good idea. The paper I used was not thick enough for the project. When I was thinking about Theresa's challenge, it came to me that the gift card holder was vanilla colored...just like the inspiration handbag. That's when I realized I wanted to alter the gift card holder.

I started by taking a large dinner plate and using it as a template to cut a nice curve off the top. I used the SU Die-cut Blooms as a template to cut flowers in other colors. I used various circle punches and also cut circles by hand to get the effect I wanted.

The following collage shows the gift card AFTER and BEFORE I did anything to it. Thanks for looking! Voting starts tomorrow morning on Theresa's blog. Have a good weekend.

Gift Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Fresh Cuts

Paper: Basic black, Green Galore (I brayered the ink onto cardstock, since I didn't have any Green Galore), So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Soft Sky, black glossy, fushia, Starbucks gift card holder

Ink: ColorBox Frost White

Other: White embossing powder, tan ribbon (blog candy from Theresa), black/white ribbon (Michael's), silver snap (Making Memories), felt flower (Making Memories), dimensionals, Martha Stewart black marker

Altered Frame

When Theresa posted her latest handbag (a Gwen Stefani L.A.M.B "Music Rocksteady" Tote) for the Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge #9, I liked the deep mocha color and the texture.

I knew I wanted to create something different this week, so this handbag was a good inspiration for an altered frame. I've had this frame for several years. Each week I keep saying how this challenge is a good reason to dig out and use some very neglected supplies.

I picked this photo of Kalino to play-off the vertical strips on his soccer jersey.

I started with an 8 1/2" x 11" pieces of Chocolate Chip cardstock. With a bone folder and a ruler, I scored the entire piece of paper is about .5" increments (I wish I had a Scor-Pal). I tried using the scoring blade on my paper cutter, but the cardstock was too large and awkward to use in the cutter with the cardstock turned at 45 degree angles.

Frame Ingredients
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Blush Blossom, Gold Foil paper (Only the Best Los Gatos)
Other: Make-a-Memory frame (A Stamp in the Hand), Making Memories brads, brown ribbon (Taylored Expressions), River Rock ribbon, foam tape, redline tape, Tombo glue, Sakura Gelly Roll pen

Handbag Challenge - Week #8

Just when I think these challenges can't get anymore challenging....they do! Theresa must be having a blast choosing the handbags. This week, the handbag is Lucky Brand Jeans Diamond Patch Tulip Satchel. The bag is a mixture of velvet, corduroy, canvas, and floral fabrics. It was these textures that were my main inspiration for this project.

A few weeks ago, Kristina gave us a curved template. I used the larger template to help me cut the sides of my card with a curve. I've had sheets of suede paper for years. This was a good opportunity to use these yummy papers. I stamped with the Priceless set on the suede paper with my Blanco Opaque White Dye Ink pad. This was also a good way to used small scraps of designer papers. My paper punch made it easy. The time-consuming part was hand-gathering the polytwill ribbon onto redline tape. You can't see in the photo, but about .5 inches from the top of the card I scored the entire length of the card to get a fold beneath the gathering.

I used my Sakura Gelly Roll white pen to do some faux stitching. What a difference that makes!

I threaded the polytwill ribbon through my button. I used several Zots to make sure it was secured. The sentiment is up on dimensionals.

Thanks for looking!

Card Ingredients

Stamps: Priceless, Pocket Silhouettes

Paper: Chocolate Chip, suede paper in 7 different colors (Only the Best Los Gatos), various designer paper scraps

Ink: ColorBox Frost White, Blanco (Stampa Rosa), So Saffron

Other: Chocolate Chip Polytwill ribbon, Sakura Gelly Roll, Making Memories button, corner rounder, 15/16" square punch, white embossing powder, Kristina's template, redline tape & redline dimensionals (Jody Morrow's sticky sale), Zots

Box in a Bag

When I saw the inspiration photo for Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge #7, I knew I wouldn't be creating a card. This Betsy Johnson "Flower Power" Tote is colorful and fun.
In my blog surfing, I'd seen many examples of a "box in a bag". I loved the tutorial by Diana Gibbs. Her photos and instructions were great. I had never made one before, so this was a fun first attempt.

I made the box base out of Basic Black cardstock. I then cut 20 1/8" strips of Basic Black cardstock and glued them on white (the black strips go all around the bag). I used flowers from Die-cut Blooms as my template for cutting others flowers in Bravo Burgundy, Rose Red, and So Saffron cardstock. I used the dotted center from the large stamp in Eastern Blooms on the larger flowers. I covered chipboard in light copper foil paper.

It was a lot of cutting, Tombo Glue, and dimensionals, but it was fun. Thanks for looking!

Bag Ingredients
Stamps: Eastern Blooms, tiny leaf from Live Like You Mean It
Paper: Die-cut Blooms, copper (Only the Best Los Gatos), Monarch (Making Memories), white, Basic Black, Pacific Point, So Saffron, Bravo Burgundy, Rose Red, Pumpkin Pie, Purely Pomegranate,
Ink: Apricot Appeal, Ruby Red, Pumpkin Pie, Pacific Point, Groovy Guava, Brilliance Cosmic Copper
Other: corner rounder, chipboard tag, Tombo glue, dimensionals, red-line adhesive, flower punch, Making Memories rhinestone brad, ribbons(blog candy from Theresa & Michael's)

Happy Birthday, Mom!

When I saw the inspiration handbag (Fossil Madeline Satchel) for Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge #6, I immediately thought about sewing on paper. My Mom's birthday is next week, so this was a perfect time to make a card for her. She taught me to sew when I was about 10 years old.

This challenge is also a good excuse to pull out some very neglected supplies. I've had several packs of origami paper for years. I've also had this brown paper that looks like leather for a long time. I even have the matching brown envelopes.

I mounted several pieces of origami and brown paper on white cardstock. The seams of the paper were right next to each other. With my exacto blade, I cut 1/2" strips of paper at an angle. I lightly mounted the 1/2" strips to cream colored cardstock. I sewed each strip of paper onto the cream cardstock. I cut 4 pieces of 1/2" thick strips of the brown cardstock. I sewed them onto the base of the card. The circle buckles were made with the 2 sizes of circle punches. I attached very thin strips of brown cardstock to the circles to make a buckle. On some of the brown cardstock I rubbed VersaMark and used clear embossing powder to give it the look of a darker leather.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Birthday Whimsy
Paper: Silver foil (Only the Best Los Gatos), cream paper, leather-type paper (CA Paper Goods), origami paper (Hanko Designs)
Ink: VersaMark, Brilliance Cosmic Copper
Other: Clear embossing powder, sewing machine/thread, dimensionals, 3/4" & 1" circle punches

I Want to Hold Your Handbag

Can you imagine the Beatles song with this title instead?

I didn't plan to make this particular card for for Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge #5, but since I had silver foil paper, a perfect sized piece of chipboard and some textured cream colored paper, I had to use the architecture of the Dolce & Gabbana Miss Easy Way Satchel as my inspiration for this card. Almost every Tuesday evening, I take my son to storytime at the library. I was sitting next to a woman who had a Dolce and "Cabbana" purse. Even though it was a knock-off, it had this silver riveted tag on it. I used a slit punch repeatedly to get the look of a zipper opening. I used my silver gel pen to draw in the zipper. I have a buckle punch (I've never used it) that I used on silver foil paper to get the silver brackets. I cut out the middle part of the buckle for the look I wanted.

I also used the colors in the bag: Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun, Pink Pirouette, and Rose Red. I didn't use white, since I focused on the front of the handbag, and not the side.


After I finished the card, I couldn't figure out what sentiment to add to it. I reached for my Verve Feeling Groovy set and the idea came to me. I modified a Verve stamp by adding some individually stamped letters after "hand" to create "handbag". People, I may be pulling out this trick again for future competitions.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Feeling Groovy (Verve)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun, Pink Pirouette, silver foil (Only the Best Los Gatos), cream textured cardstock (from Peru)
Ink: Rose Red
Other: Making Memories mini silver brads, corner rounder, SU slit punch, EK Success buckle punch, silver gel pen, dimensionals, chipboard

Purseonally

Boy, this was a challenge! This card is for week 4 of Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge.

I have black glossy paper in my stash, so I decided to use the details of the Ralph Lauren handbag as my inspiration. This photo doesn't capture the glossy paper...ugh!

Earlier this Summer, I bought some Making Memories felt pieces. Included were sunglasses. I tried turning them from turquoise to black, but it didn't work. I traced them on glossy paper instead and cut the shape out.

Card Ingredients

Stamps: A Little Love

Paper: Basic Black, yellow scrap paper, Black Glossy (Only the Best), Gold Foil (Only the Best)

Ink: StazOn Jet Black

Punches: yellow ribbon (Taylored Expressions), corner rounder, slit punch, small and large tag punches, 3/4" circle punch

Other: gold eyelet & large rhinestone brad (Making Memories), foam tape, Stickles, Sakura gold gel pen, gold thread, oval Coluzzle, paper piercer, paper piercing template

Thinking of You

We'll I barely made the deadline, but here's my card for week 3 of Theresa's Designer Handbag Inspiration Challenge. This was a tough one for me. I created a card that I didn't like. I had to start all over. I was trying to capture the texture of the woven rattan. It didn't work. Here's version 2.0.

Card Ingredients
Stamps: Memoirs (Inque Boutique), Little Hellos (SU)
Paper: confetti kraft, white
Ink: VersaMark, Close to Cocoa, Brilliant Blue
Other: corner rounder, clear embossing powder, Prima flowers, mini pearls (Michael's), foam tape, dark blue ribbon (Taylored Expressions), Sakura white gel pen